Atmospheric pollution

Abstract

Air pollution from anthropogenic sources has been and continues to be considered a serious environmental problem affecting public health. Its seriousness lies in the fact that pollutant levels rise in places that increase the likelihood of impact on human health. Therefore, air pollution is a major threat to public health worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than two million premature deaths per year are attributable to the effects of both indoor and outdoor air pollution. In addition, more than half of this disease burden is supported by the populations of developing countries. Epidemiological studies in several countries have shown that chronic exposure to traffic-related pollutants, chemicals and petrochemicals, such as particulate matter (PM), metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) associated with PM, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and inorganic gases (SO2, NOx, O3) produce adverse effects on development and affect lung function; along with an increase in respiratory disease, often expressed in terms of a diagnosis of asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cardiovascular effects and increased mortality. In this sense, it is important to characterize and quantify air pollution, recognizing and evaluating the associated health effects. an adequate way to present these results (from public management) is the elaboration of an air quality index (AQI) that represents, in a simple way, the relationship between pollution levels and its possible health effects. To achieve this objective it is necessary to design and implement a monitoring network of atmospheric pollutants. In its design it is necessary to have clear objectives to be accomplished, which must be clear and concise, as well as the resources available to be carried out. The network alone is not sufficient to develop an integral program of air pollution control, but must be complemented by other tools including an inventory of gaseous emissions and the use of air pollutant dispersion modeling tools.